Gov. DeSantis Speaks To The Jewish Federations Of Florida About The Importance Of Stopping Antisemitism And Supporting Israel

Today, Governor Ron DeSantis delivered remarks to a town hall briefing on antisemitism organized by the Jewish Federations of Florida.

The event was sponsored by the Florida Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Community of West Coast Florida, and the Jewish Federations of Greater Naples, Greater Orlando, Lee & Charlotte Counties, Sarasota-Manatee, and Tampa.

Jewish Federations organized the meeting to discuss the increased incidence of antisemitic incidents that have occurred over the past few weeks.

“We all need to speak with one voice and say that antisemitism is not something that’s going to be tolerated,” said Governor DeSantis. “We are going to stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters and we are absolutely going to stand strong in support of the Florida-Israel relationship. The Legislature and I have worked really hard on a lot of great legislation over the past few years on issues including Holocaust education, anti-BDS legislation, security for synagogues and Jewish day schools, and so much more.”

• During his first year in office, Governor DeSantis led a trade mission to Israel where he held the first-ever meeting of the Florida Cabinet in Jerusalem at the new embassy and signed memorandums of understanding with many innovative Israel technology companies. That trip continues to bear fruit: Just last week Governor DeSantis went to Lake Okeechobee and the Caloosahatchee River to highlight a leading Israeli company, BlueGreen Water Technologies, which is working with the state of Florida to combat blue-green algae in the state.
• Governor DeSantis has delivered historic funding to protect synagogues, Jewish day schools, and other Jewish institutions from the threat of antisemitic violence. In this year’s budget alone he secured $4 million for additional security for Jewish day schools and over $12 million in funding for other Jewish institutions.
• Governor DeSantis signed into law House Bill 741 which added religion as a protected class with regard to discrimination against students and employees in Florida’s public education system. Encompassing kindergarten through college, this law treats antisemitism the same as racism, and will not be tolerated in Florida. 

Source: https://www.tampafp.com/gov-desantis-speaks-to-the-jewish-federations-of-florida-about-the-importance-of-stopping-antisemitism-and-supporting-israel/